Scaffolds of Pectin-Graft-Polycaprolactone/Polyaniline Blend Nanofibers for Bone Tissue Engineering

Background and Aim: Electrically conducting polymers (CPs), discoveredin the late 1970s, have received tremendous attention because theycombine the attractive properties of traditional polymers with those ofmetals and other inorganic conductors, including optical and electricalactivity. One reason CPs have attracted the attention of biomedicalengineers is the discovery that many cell types (e.g., neurons, osteoblasts, fibroblasts) respond to electrical currents in vitro and in vivo. This ledto the consideration that rationally designed conducting scaffolds couldplay a role in tissue engineering. On the other hand, the scaffolds shouldbe biodegradable with appropriate mechanical properties that do notrequire surgery to remove scaffolds again. The scaffolds must have themechanical properties appropriate to the target tissue.Methods: Pectin-polycaprolactone (PEC-g-PCL) grafted copolymer andhomo-polyaniline were synthesized via the ring opening polymerizationof caprolactone and the chemical oxidation polymerization of aniline,respectively. Biocompatibility of the electrospun nanofiber was evaluatedby assessing the adhesion and proliferation of mouse osteoblastMC3T3-E1 cells line and in vitro degradability.Results: We successfully fabricated the PEC-PCL/PANI scaffold bythe improved electrospinning process. Electroactivity of nanofibers,which here was for the presence of PANI, is an essential factor in itsperformance; because the electrical signals are pivotal physiologicalstimuli that control the adhesion and differentiation of various celltypes. After twelve weeks, the mass loss for PEC-g-PCL/PANI sample was55%. Scaffolds based on PEC-g-PCL/PANI nanofibers having an averagediameter of 90–130 nm and electrical conductivity of 0.035 S cm-1imitated the natural microenvironment of extracellular matrix (ECM) toregulate cell attachment, proliferation, and differentiation.Conclusion: This work demonstrated that scaffold properties suchas porosity, mechanical characteristics, degradation, and electricalproperties can be tailor-made through the composition of nanofibers.

کلیدواژه ها:

Polyaniline ، Pectin ، Nanofiber ، Scaffold ، Electrospinning ، Tissue engineering